Am I ready to play?

[MS256]

The Marshall came out and asked if we would like a refund on everything including the cart and range balls. He pointed back to two very frustrated looking golfers. I took him up on it almost immediately. My wife's girlfriend who took us out on this endeavor was a little embarrassed to say the least. My drive was pretty decent as I recall, but the same persimmon club didn't work that well on the fairway and in the trees. At that point, I had no idea why I had 13 other clubs in my bag. Needlessly said, I continued to "play" on other courses. We even went on to play on some pretty nice courses, which had more separation between groups. Even took lots of lessons in between going to the courses.

BTW, the lefty who let me borrow his clubs started me on the track to improvement. I think he saw that my backswing was so much faster than my downswing, then asked me how I swing a baseball bat. After seeing me swing, he handed me his SW. The results were much better than any right handed shot I had made in the previous year. I had just spent a lot of money and time learning to kind of play right handed, and was in a quandary about which hand to use. So, I looked up something about the subject and the search eventually led me to this site.

When I first joined this site I was not that happy about this incident, but I can look at my first posts and laugh. I have a completely different perspective at this point. About a year ago, I might have been one of those frustrated golfers on the same course. I've even passed that stage, and just hop onto an empty slot in front of beginners. I know there's going to be plenty of space there.

I honestly don't know if I could be a course Marshall. If somebody is an ass or something I have no problem running them off but I have a huge soft spot for decent people that are trying to have some fun with their kids. I could talk to them and try to educate them about ways they could have some fun without playing out every hole but no way I could ask them to leave.

[colin007]

Par 3 courses are your friend. If you're playing too slowly, learn how to play faster. If you're gonna miss it, miss it quick.

[Ernest Jones]

If you're gonna miss it, miss it quick.

Wisdom.

[Moppy]

Don't let them bully you off the big courses.

[colin007]

Don't let them bully you off the big courses.

sure, but theres a time for big courses and i dont think this guy is there yet.  why would a beginner, whos whiffing all the time, want to slog around on a 6,500+ yard course?  i know this is just my opinion, but when i started playing on full length courses, 5,800-6,100 yards was PLENTY.  nobody wants to be whiffing out there in the fairway for 5 hours whilst more competent golfers wait on the tee.  hone your game on shorter courses and the range.  when you stop whiffing, go to a real course as long as you can keep up with the group in front of you.

[mcanadiens]

sure, but theres a time for big courses and i dont think this guy is there yet.  why would a beginner, whos whiffing all the time, want to slog around on a 6,500+ yard course?  i know this is just my opinion, but when i started playing on full length courses, 5,800-6,100 yards was PLENTY.  nobody wants to be whiffing out there in the fairway for 5 hours whilst more competent golfers wait on the tee.  hone your game on shorter courses and the range.  when you stop whiffing, go to a real course as long as you can keep up with the group in front of you.

For me, shorter is way more enjoyable. ... I've been at it for a few years now and I still play par-3s often. Now that I'm on a bit, a 6,000-yard course is pretty good for me. The couple of occasions when I've played a 7,100-yard monster, have been just plain frustrating.

[Moppy]

Yeah, my home course is 5800 from the whites, and I like it. I have played 6400 and didn't enjoy that extra hit on the fairway every time. I am old enough that I don't feel like I have to hit with the young guys, and I just like the shorter course.  What I am saying is that there are plenty of shorter par 70s. Like this one. where he can play golf.

[colin007]

Agreed. Around me, the shorter courses also tend to be less busy, so that would behoove a beginner

[Ernest Jones]

Executive courses (usually par 64 or 68) are perfect. Usually wide open traffic wise but with opportunities to hit driver and long irons. Generally speaking you can play 18 in about 2-1/2 hours, which is pretty attractive to us young(ish) dads.

[FireDragon76]

I ended up playing 9 holes at Twin Rivers out in Oviedo, Florida.   This was a difficult course, the greens were very fast, the bunkers had turned hard due to rains and watering, and and its under repair so it was doubled up on the front 9.  I still had a good time, but it was probably despite the course.  My score was above double bogey on every hole,, but I still did better than I thought I would- it seemed easier to actually figure out how to make shots on a real golf course, than a driving range.  I also only lost two balls.

The next course I play will have to have less yardage, slower greens, and fewer slopes.

[Lihu]

I ended up playing 9 holes at Twin Rivers out in Oviedo, Florida.   This was a difficult course, the greens were very fast, the bunkers had turned hard due to rains and watering, and and its under repair so it was doubled up on the front 9.  I still had a good time, but it was probably despite the course.  My score was above double bogey on every hole,, but I still did better than I thought I would- it seemed easier to actually figure out how to make shots on a real golf course, than a driving range.  I also only lost two balls.   The next course I play will have to have less yardage, slower greens, and fewer slopes.

Nice job! Keep on playing. . .

[mcanadiens]

@FireDragon76 , Glad you got out. Starting was the hard part for me to. You'll get a feel for the area courses and I'm sure you'll find a few you like.